Senior Volunteers Foster Special Bonds

When Lois Lovell arrives at work every day, she is welcomed with hugs and smiles.

Those who greet her are her “grandchildren”--at least for a few hours--through a program that matches senior citizens like Lovell with developmentally disabled children and adults at eight sites across Orange County.

The foster grandparent program has given her life new meaning and purpose, said Lovell, 65, of Tustin. Since enrolling in April, she has made new friends and basked in the love of those who eagerly await her arrival.

“They need me as much as I need them,” she said. “The program’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

The foster grandparent program started 24 years ago at Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa. A senior companion program was added 11 years ago.

Director Maureen Dunn said the federally funded program was designed for low-income people 60 and older who want to be involved in the community.

On a typical day, the senior volunteers may be helping children with classroom activities or working on crafts, reading, chatting and taking walks with their “foster friends.”

The “grandparents” work with developmentally disabled people four hours a day, five days a week. They are paid a small stipend plus travel expenses, and are provided with a hot meal for lunch.

“For many of them, it provides them with something very meaningful and purposeful to do with their time,” Dunn said of the volunteers, who now number 44.

In September 1995, foster grandparents started volunteering at Mark Twain Special School in Garden Grove. In the past year, Principal Virginia Ramos said, the seniors have become an invaluable asset.

“Their presence in the room means the students are getting one-on-one attention,” Ramos said. “Their commitment to the children is . . . the most wonderful partnership.”

Raymond Fox of Orange said he became a foster grandparent in 1984 because he needed a reason to get out of bed in the morning. Through the program, he said, he has grown personally and forged a special bond with children and adults with special needs.

“The time has gone by so fast, it doesn’t seem like 12 years,” said Fox, 71. “I feel better than I did 10 years ago.”

Information: (714) 957-5197.